In Sunday's game against the Washington Redskins, cornerback Martin Mayhew made a smart decision with a ''stupid'' play.

Beaten for a sure touchdown from the 1-yard line, Mayhew used his wisdom in illegally latching on to Washington tight end Coleman Bell with 13 seconds left in a 14-6 game. The Redskins tried the same play on the next snap, and Mayhew picked off Gus Frerotte's pass to secure the victory.

''When you're on the 1-yard line and everything's on the line, we know if we're beat, we're going to do something like that,'' Tampa Bay strong safety Barney Bussey said.

''You saw what happened after

that. He came up with a big play. It's hard for a young guy to understand that. They're going to look at him (Mayhew) and say, 'Man, you made a stupid play.' But we know if we're beat, there's no tomorrow, so if we can do something stupid like that we can live to see another play.''

The Bucs' secondary is one for the aged - in fact, it's the second-oldest starting secondary in the NFL behind Oakland. Mayhew, who turns 30 on Oct. 8, and cornerback Charles Dimry, 29, each have eight years of experience. Free safety Thomas Everett, 30, has nine years. Bussey, 33, has played in the NFL for 10 seasons.

The foursome has played a lot of Sundays in January, with a combined 22 games of playoff experience. Everett has two Super Bowl rings from when he played for Dallas in 1992-93. Mayhew, from Florida State, was on Washington's 1991 world championship team. Bussey played for the 1988 Cincinnati squad that lost in the Super Bowl. Dimry was in the AFC Championship Game while with Denver in 1991.

''There are so many things that can happen to you out there,'' Tampa Bay defensive backs coach Johnnie Lynn said. ''The positive is that we've got veteran guys. They've seen it.''

What the Bucs' defensive backs would like to see more of is interceptions. Tampa Bay had just nine interceptions last year, with seven made by the secondary.

NOTES: Middle linebacker Hardy Nickerson has been fined $4,000 by the league, according to NFL director of communication Greg Aiello. The fine was handed down for Nickerson's unsportsmanlike conduct penalty against Chicago two weeks ago when he ripped off the helmet of Bears running back Rashaan Salaam. Nickerson would not comment on the fine, but laughed when asked if he felt lighter in the wallet.